•Condemns Oluwo’s campaign ban, questions N100m support for Igboho security outfit, demands equal application of law

Pro-democracy and civil rights advocacy group Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has expressed grave concern over what it describes as the disturbing emergence of ethnic-based private security formations, political intimidation and attempts to restrict opposition candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.

HURIWA said recent developments across the South-West constitute dangerous warning signals that must not be ignored by the Federal Government, security agencies, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and all Nigerians committed to the survival of constitutional democracy.

The rights group specifically condemned the declaration by the Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdulrosheed Akanbi, that presidential candidates other than President Bola Ahmed Tinubu should not campaign in Osun State, describing the position as constitutionally untenable and a dangerous precedent in a democratic society.

HURIWA said no traditional ruler, political office holder or private individual possesses the constitutional authority to determine which presidential candidate Nigerians may listen to, receive or vote for in any part of the country.

The organisation warned that allowing such declarations to go unchallenged could create an atmosphere of political intimidation in which supporters of opposition parties are denied equal access to campaign platforms and voters are effectively deprived of the opportunity to hear alternative political messages.

HURIWA therefore called on the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and INEC to immediately make it clear that all presidential candidates recognised under the law are entitled to campaign freely throughout Osun State and every other part of Nigeria.

The group noted that the Constitution guarantees citizens freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, association and movement, while electoral laws provide the framework for political campaigns.

HURIWA in a statement issued on Monday and signed by the National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, said that these rights cannot be suspended by traditional declarations or political endorsements.

‘Nigeria cannot operate a democracy of selective political access’

The rights group said it was particularly alarmed by the apparent convergence of political endorsement, traditional authority and private security structures in the run-up to 2027.

According to HURIWA, democracy becomes dangerously compromised when traditional institutions begin determining which candidates can campaign in particular territories while private or ethnic security organisations acquire substantial financial and material support.

The organisation said the situation raises fundamental questions about the neutrality of the state and the capacity of security agencies to guarantee a level playing field before, during and after the 2027 elections.

HURIWA stressed that supporting a political candidate is a constitutional right, but such support must not translate into the deployment or endorsement of private armed structures capable of influencing electoral outcomes through intimidation or force.

HURIWA questions N100m support for Igboho security outfit

HURIWA also expressed concern over the reported donation of N100 million and a brand-new Hilux vehicle by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, to the Iru Ekun Security Network, a community security initiative established by Yoruba Nation advocate Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho.

The group said it was not opposed to legitimate community-based efforts to protect lives and property but insisted that security remains fundamentally a responsibility of the constitutional security agencies.

HURIWA said the development demands transparency over the legal status, command structure, operational mandate and accountability mechanisms of such security formations.

The organisation warned that Nigeria cannot afford a situation where different ethnic groups establish, arm, finance or operate parallel security structures outside clearly defined constitutional and statutory controls.

‘Why should one ethnic militia be tolerated while another is crushed?’

HURIWA recalled what it described as the government's previous treatment of the security structures associated with the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), stressing that the principle of equality before the law must apply to all Nigerians and all groups.

The rights organisation said it was therefore deeply concerned by what it considers an emerging double standard in the treatment of ethnic security formations.

HURIWA asked the Federal Government to explain why an ethnic-affiliated security structure should be tolerated, encouraged or materially supported while another ethnic security formation is subjected to severe security operations.

The organisation maintained that the answer cannot be political loyalty or electoral usefulness.

HURIWA therefore renewed its call for the blanket prohibition of ethnic-based militias and unregulated private armies across Nigeria.

“A private army is a private army, irrespective of who establishes it, who finances it or which political interest it serves.”

The organisation warned that such structures could become particularly dangerous during the 2027 presidential election if deployed to intimidate voters, suppress opposition campaigns, influence polling environments or enforce political directives.

HURIWA: Disarm all ethnic militias before 2027

HURIWA urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to demonstrate that the Federal Government has no favourites in the enforcement of national security laws by ordering a comprehensive review of all ethnic-based security outfits operating across the country.

The group said government must establish clear rules governing community security initiatives and ensure that no group is permitted to transform itself into an armed political force.

It further demanded that security agencies investigate any allegation of illegal possession, movement or deployment of arms by private or ethnic security formations.

HURIWA said waiting until the election season is fully underway before confronting the problem would be a grave mistake.

“A stitch in time saves nine. The Federal Government must act now before these private and ethnic security formations become instruments of electoral violence.”

HURIWA demands investigation into alleged 6,000 missing persons

HURIWA also expressed shock over allegations by the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) and the Ekwenche Research Institute that about 6,000 families in the South-East are allegedly searching for relatives who reportedly disappeared in the custody of security agencies since 2021.

The organisation stressed that the allegations are grave and must not be dismissed without investigation.

HURIWA said the reported disappearances, if established, would represent a serious human-rights crisis requiring urgent intervention by Nigerian institutions and credible international bodies.

The group therefore called on the Houses of Assembly of the South-East states and the National Assembly to investigate the allegations and establish the whereabouts of persons reportedly missing.

HURIWA equally challenged the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to investigate the allegations within the limits of its statutory mandate and publish its findings.

The organisation urged Amnesty International and the United Nations Human Rights Council to independently examine the allegations and, where credible evidence of criminal conduct is established, recommend appropriate prosecution in accordance with Nigerian and international law.

HURIWA said allegations of enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention or extrajudicial killings must never be allowed to become politically convenient subjects that are ignored because of the identity or region of the victims.

‘No ethnic group is above the law’

HURIWA maintained that the solution to Nigeria's worsening insecurity cannot be the creation of competing ethnic armies.

The group said Nigeria needs one constitutional security architecture governed by clear laws, professional command structures, democratic oversight and accountability.

It warned that ethnic militias, political thuggery, private armies and unchecked traditional authority could combine into a dangerous cocktail capable of undermining the 2027 elections.

HURIWA therefore called on President Tinubu to publicly reassure Nigerians that:

No ethnic militia will be allowed to operate as a parallel army;

No traditional ruler will be permitted to restrict lawful political campaigns;

All presidential candidates will enjoy equal protection during the 2027 election;

Security agencies will remain politically neutral;

Allegations of enforced disappearances and unlawful detention will be investigated;

And every Nigerian, irrespective of ethnicity, religion or political affiliation, will enjoy equal protection under the law.

HURIWA said Nigeria's democracy cannot survive on selective enforcement, political favouritism and ethnic security arrangements.

The organisation urged Nigerians to reject every attempt to normalise private armies and political intimidation, warning that the erosion of democratic freedoms rarely begins with the formal suspension of elections; it begins when citizens gradually lose the right to organise, campaign, speak and choose freely.